Mate was at it the other day & was well impressed, so I'll hold off the cynicsim a wee bit longer

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Funny last para here

Back at the stadium, the air is filled with the sound of whirling helicopter blades, as the very same chopper now magically appears above the stadium in real time, assuming it is not shot down by the surface to air missiles located on a nearby London tower block. A hatch opens. A rope drops.

There are rumours that Ali is being lined up to take part in the flame lighting ceremony as he has flown into London this week. I think its more likely that he has been lined up for the bit of the cermeony where they highlight the fact that he cheated Cooper in their fight at Wembley and how our 'enry should rightfully have been the sportsman on the 20th Century!

See a duck. Drink! See an 'urban dance move'. Drink! Someone on a wire. Drink! Escaped sheep. Drink! Someone in a co-ordinated outfit throwing someone else in a co-ordinated outfit up in the air and catching them. Drink!

See a duck. Drink! See an 'urban dance move'. Drink! Someone on a wire. Drink! Escaped sheep. Drink! Someone in a co-ordinated outfit throwing someone else in a co-ordinated outfit up in the air and catching them. Drink!

I was there last night (a rehearsal for the opening ceremony) and it was really amazing. I was cynical about the Olympics, yes it is a waste of money, the ticketing system has been a shambles etc etc.....but I take my hat off to Danny Boyle, it was brilliant and will be well worth watching. It made me proud to be a Londoner. It's easy to grumble about things, the crowds were mental and there were a couple of issues....but it was great and the stadium looks brilliant. Despite what the papers said today about the transport, it took us exactly 90 minutes to get from our seats back to Stockwell!

It is a shame people are posting pictures of the event last night on twitter as half the excitement about Friday's opening ceremony is the element of surprise..... At the end of the day I'd far rather the show was mind mindbogglingly impressive than to have a poor show and to be the laughing stock of the rest of the world...?

Along with perhaps 70k others, this was the least exclusive guest list I've ever been on. And we were there to enjoy, or possibly grimace, at tens of millions of squids of show. For the occasion, the whole finances thing I'd momentarily scrubbed from my mind. I wanted to know just how well or indeed badly Boyle had made of his budget.

(this will be be spoiler free, so bear with me)

Boyle seems to have taken a big pot, and chucked in everything British he can think of.

The intro video - apart from looking delighful - chucks the occasional nod to things that are a far cry from reverence and worshipping the royal state. You can sense a little of Boyle's socialist leanings, but it ramps later.

Some of the next segments transform the set - amazingly. The cast of thousands looks like a random shambles, but then things unfold and it's a proper talking point. Our group is constantly nudging each other, pointing out little details.

There's a middle bit. It will look lovely on TV, especially from helicopters. The crowd is ecstatic.

Later on Boyle hits safe territory, with British music.

So, forgetting just for a moment the money, is it any good? Well, we didn't see the whole thing. And on TV there'll be more video inserts too...

...but, I think it might just pass the bar. There's a few wtf moments, enough to fuel both the local cynics and a possibly (momentarily) bewildered foreign media & visitors. But for domestic viewers, I think there's enough smiles to give it 8/10; when a lot of us were expecting alot less.

(So, that's my thing on the rehearsal. Over to you viewers for the real thing. The commentary here is always telling. )